Connecting rod and piston tool



April 7, 1959 c. R. CHRISTIAN CONNECTING ROD AND- PISTON TOOL Filed July 13, 1956 .W TQ fhx um l l I I Charlie R. Christian I N V EN TOR.

BY v Mr nqs and United S tates Patent O 2,880,500 CONNECTING ROD AND PISTON Toot.

Charlie R. Christian, Knoxville, Tenn.

Application July 13, 1956, Serial No. 597,801

1 Claim. (Cl. 29-275) The present invention relates to a hand tool which is especially, although not necessarily, designed and appropriately adapted for use by an automobile mechanic by reason of the fact that it may be helpfully employed while inserting a piston into a cylinder or removing the piston and connecting rod, as an assembly, from said cylinder.

Although the stated tool may be used for imparting hammered or forcifully applied blows to any appropriately highly polishad mechanical element it has been expressly perfected with the view in mind of providing the automobile mechanic with an instrumentality which will enable him to perform the aforementioned installing and removing jobs while at the same time, preventing scoring and damaging of polished and equally precision finished surfaces.

At the present time makeshift practices and implements are used to assist the mechanic in dislodging and driving out a stubborn piston and cylinder assembly. In some instances the wooden handle of a sledge hammer or a mallet can be used. With a view toward enabling the mechanic to perform the requirements of the stated tasks with expediency and reliability and using a minimum amount of time it is the objective in the instant situation to appropriate and use a relatively long metal rod, some 19 or 20 inches more or less, and of suitable cross-section, an inch more or less, this serving as a reach member and also as a means of transmitting the forces either those applied by manual effort or by hammering blows against the end of the rod with a suitable hammer.

Another object of the invention is to provide a rod which performs not only as a reach member but also as a handle and has appropriately arranged knurled grips. On the leading or working end of the rod head means is provided. This is preferably a composite construction and comprises a compressibly resilient rubber block of appropriate heaviness and density mounted on a reduced end of the rod and said reduced end carrying a washerlike collar which is interposed between the rod and the rubber impact head to function as a force distributing dolly.

Other objects, features and advantages will become more readily apparent from the following description and the accompanying illustrative, but not restrictive, drawing.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the views:

Figure 1 is an elevational view of a hand tool constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a section on the plane of the line 22 of Figure 1 looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Figure 3 is a section on the line 33 of Figure 2.

Referring now to the drawing and with the aid of reference numerals the aforementioned shank or rod is denoted by the numeral 4. It may be approximately 19 2,880,500 Patented Apr. 7, 1959 2 inches or so in length. Usually, it willbe about an inch or slightly less in cross-section. Adjacent the upper end 6 there is a knurled grip 8. On the intermediate portion there is a second selectively usable knurled grip 10.

The left hand end in the drawings is reduced in crosssection as at 12 to provide an extension and also an annular shoulder 14. Press fitted on this extension is an annular collar 16 which bears against the shoulder 14 aand which serves to deliver and distribute the blows imparted to the rod and which is here of metal and functions as a dolly. There is a dowel pin 18 fitted into a semi-circular keyway 20 in the extension 12 and also into a corresponding opposed keyway 22 in the collar or dolly. This keyed construction prevents the dolly from turning relative to the extension 12 and prevents undue wear between the shoulder and the dolly and the consequent undesirable wobbling of the dolly. The extension 12 is of a length greater than the thickness of the dolly and projects beyond the same as at 24 where it is provided with keying grooves 26. This grooved end is embedded in the compressed rubber or equivalent compressibly resilient impact head 28. The latter is preferably of a cross-section or diameter equal to that of the collar or dolly 16, and the dolly bears against the cooperating surface 30 as shown in Figure 2.

In practice when it is desired to manually apply the intended forces the user simply catches hold of the knurled hand-grip 10 and alternately pounds the rubber head against the work surface. This mode of use is sometimes sufiicient to drive a piston (not shown) into a cylinder in a cylinder block in a generally obvious manner. Also the leverage is better by catching hold of the handle-forming rod 4 at the point 10. Where a greater force is required and one has to use a hammer (not shown) he will usually catch hold of the grip 8 and apply the hammer blows to the surface 9 in an obvious manner. The blows will be transmitted through the rod to the dolly and then to the head in a well known manner. As before stated the invention is primarily intended for use by an automobile mechanic and it will save time, patience and money in the repair steps involving either installing a piston or hammer and removing a connecting rod and piston assembly especially if the latter is jammed and perhaps so lodged in place that hammer forces are necessary for the removal job.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modificiations and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

An automobile mechanics tool through the medium of which the mechanic may obtain aid in installing and removing a piston and connecting rod assembly comprising, in combination, a rigid elongated rod serving as a handle and also having the additional function of transmitting forcible blows applied to one end thereof by a mallet, hammer or the like, the other end of said rod being reduced in cross-section and defining an axial extension and an annular shoulder at the juncture of the inner end of the extension and rod proper, said extension having circumferential keying grooves therein, the surface of said extension having a relatively short longitudinal semi-circular groove providing a keyway, a rigid collar functioning as a dolly and encircling said extension and abutting said shoulder, said collar being of a diameter appreciably greater than the cross sectional diameter of the rod, and the portion of the collar encircling said extension having a groove therein registering with the groove in the extension a dowel pin fitted into the respective grooves and constituting a key and serving to hold the collar well keyed on the extension, said collar being non-compressible, and a compressibly resilient impact head having an axial socket, thesocketed end of the head abutting said collar and the grooved end of the extension projecting into the socket and being M keyed therein.

UNITED STATES PATENTS Saliger Jan. 8, 1924 Stevens Oct. 8, 1929 Peters Oct. 22, 1929 Widman Sept. 15, 1931 Wilson June 21, 1932 Hepperle Oct. 23, 1934 

